The statements in this section merely provide background information related to the present disclosure and may or may not constitute prior art.
Lithotripsy is a common method for fragmenting stones, or calculi, in the urinary tract, kidneys, and/or bladder. Most lithotripsy devices use ultrasound, laser, or pneumatic energy sources to fragment such stones. Typically, the lithotripter includes a shaft connected to an electrically controlled driver or a pneumatic actuator. The shaft is inserted into the patient's anatomy to a location near the stone, and a waveform is sent through the shaft to impact the stone with the shaft to create a jackhammer or drilling effect on the stone, thus fragmenting the stone into smaller elements that are easier to remove. The stone fragments are then removed by irrigation and/or baskets.
Among the literature that can pertain to this technology include the following patent documents and published patent applications: US 2006/0036168; US 2008/0287793; US 2010/0286791; US 2011/0251623; US2008/0188864; U.S. Pat. No. 7,229,455; U.S. Pat. No. 6,575,956; U.S. Pat. No. 4,721,107; U.S. Pat. No. 5,628,743; and U.S. Pat. No. 8,226,629, all incorporated by reference for all purposes.
Current lithotripsy devices may be expensive, complicated, and/or less effective at fragmenting stones than desired. For example, certain lithotripsy methods may include the use of a first driver to provide a first waveform to the stone through a first shaft and a second driver to provide another waveform to the stone through a second shaft that is concentrically mounted around the first shaft. Though insertion of a lithotripter through the patient's urethra and ureter may be desired, such a device requires percutaneous access to the stone due to the large combined shaft size. In another example, a single driver is used to provide a waveform to the stone, however, the single waveform may not fragment the stone as well as desired.
Accordingly, there exists a need for more effective, simpler, smaller, and/or less expensive lithotripsy devices.